PROJECT REPORT

ON
A STUDY ON CHANGING TRENDS OF
WOMEN EMPLOYMENT IN INDIA
(Period 1987-88 to 2017-18)

Submitted for the Partial fulfillment of the requirement of Degree of Master of

Arts in Economics

Submitted By:
Laxmipriya Behera
P.G 2nd year
Roll NO : PG19-ECO-058
Exam Roll No . : 112R0019013

Under the supervision of

DR. KALPANA SAHOO
Asst. Professor
PG DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS

PG DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS
RAMADEVI WOMEN`S UNIVERSITY
BHUBANESWAR, ODISHA
2020-21

1
Dr. Kalpana Sahoo
Assistant Professor
P.G Department of Economics
Rama Devi Women’s University
Bhubaneswar, Odisha

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the project entitled, “A STUDY ON CHANGING

TRENDS OF WOMEN EMPLOYMENT IN INDIA[PERIOD 1987-88 TO
2017-18] submitted by Laxmipriya Behera in partial fulfillment of the
requirement for the award of degree of Master of Arts in Economics to the P.G
Department of Economics, Rama Devi Women’s University, Bhubaneswar,
Odisha is carried out by her under my supervision.

( Dr.Kalpana Sahoo)

2
 DECLARATION

I, do hereby declare that the project on “A STUDY ON CHANGING

TRENDS OF WOMEN EMPLOYMENT IN INDIA[PERIOD 1987-88 TO
2017-18]”, submitted by me under the supervision of (Dr.) KALPANA
SAHOO, Associate professor in Economics, Rama Devi Women’s University,
Bhubaneswar, for the partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of
Master of Arts in Economics in the academic year 2020-21. The sources from
which the project has been done is properly acknowledged. To the best of my
knowledge that no part of my project has been submitted earlier to any
University for the award of any degree.

Laxmipriya Behera
University Roll no: 112R0019013
Exam roll no: PG19-ECO-058
P.G. Department of Economics

3
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

It’s a great opportunity for me to study on the topic names “A STUDY ON

CHANGING TRENDS OF WOMEN EMPLOYMENT IN INDIA
[PERIOD1987-88 TO 2017-18]” At the time of the studies I have gone through
different books, journals, newspapers, and websites that helped me get
acquainted myself with the topic.

I express my deepest sense of reverence and heartfelt gratitude to my esteemed

and learned Guide (Dr.) KALPANA SAHOO, Associate Professor in
Economics, Rama Devi Women’s University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, who has
always been helpful making me understand the different conceptual problems
and system of research in my study. I, surely acknowledge that it would not
have been possible without her kind support and guidance that she showed me
throughout my dissertation preparation and writing.

I would also like to show appreciation to all faculty members of PG Department

of Economics and the batch mates of my department for their support. I also
owe my indebtedness to my parents for whom, I am here today and their
blessings, love, affection, and motivation to carry out this work. I have tried
hard to gather all relevant information’s regarding this subject. I don’t know
how far I am able to do that.

Above all, I’m deeply grateful to the almighty, who has given me immense
courage and blessings throughout this work for which I have been able to
complete this project.

Laxmipriya Behera
University Roll no: 112R0019013
Exam Roll no:PG19-ECO-058

4
 LIST OF TABLES AND DIAGRAMS

FIGURE 1: Male-Female work force participation rate

FIGURE 2: Rural - Urban work force participation rate

FIGURE 3: Sectoral employment of female in India

FIGURE 4: Educational level of working females.

FIGURE 5: Average wage of rural and urban from 1993-94 to

2017-18.

FIGURE 6: State level employment scenario.

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 CONTENTS

 CHAPTER 1

 INTRODUCTION
 OBJECTIVES
 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
 METHODOLOGY

 CHAPTER 2

 REVIEW OF LITERATURE

 CHAPTER 3

 COMPARATIVE STATUS OF WOMEN EMPLOYMENT IN INDIA

 CHAPTER 4

 DETERMINANTS OF WOMEN EMPLOYMENT

 CHAPTER 5

 ANALYSE AND INTERPRETE THE TRENDS OF WOMEN EMPLOMENT

 CHAPTER 6

 BARRIERS OF WOMEN EMPLOYMENT OR PROBLEMS FACED BY WORKING

WOMEN

 CHAPTER 7

 FINDINGS
 POLICY SUGGESTION
 CONCLUSION
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

6
 ABSTRACT

It is the fact that investing in human capital is one of the most effective means
of reducing poverty and encouraging sustainable development of women.
Thanks to the human rights, increasing job participation of women in the job
market and to the right to vote , women have emerged from the strictly private
sphere to which they were formerly restricted . Women have broken the implicit
social contract that for more than hundreds of years confined them to home. In
employment opportunities too , women in India today have stormed all male
bastions. Be it piloting aircraft, heading multinational corporations , holding top
bureaucratic positions , leading industrial houses, and lorry drivers , women
have made it to all hither to considered male bastions in India. However women
in India, usually receive less education and employment opportunities than men.
In this context, the present study tries to reveal an overall picture of female
employment in India , type of employment , wage differentials, work
participation, employment potentiality , using NSSO data. It looks rural-urban
differences and inter-state disparities. The study focusing basically on
disadvantaged women makes appropriate recommendation for improving the
employment potentialities of women in India.

7
CHAPTER - 1

8
INTRODUCTION:

There is no chance of the Welfare of the world unless the condition of women is
improved full stop. It is not possible for a bird to fly on one wing.

Swami Vivekananda

When woman moves forward, the family moves, the village moves and the
nation moves.
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru

The above two notion explore the importance of women in nation building. A
woman is the nucleus around home whom the family, the society and the whole
community move. Women constitute half the population in other words half the
Nations human resources. The development of the whole community cannot be
separated or viewed in isolation from the development of women. Their
contribution to the homes, work and outside have made them powerful and
indispensable agents of the society, for social and technological transformation
of the universe. Thus it is inevitable to bring them into the net of workforce as
then only our country and Society get fully developed. Thus development of a
nation depends on women empowerment. And women employment is
considered as an important determinant of women empowerment.

It is a general belief that economic dependence of women is a major obstacle of

their empowerment. Women participation in the labour force is, therefore
regarded as an index of their empowerment. It is believed that economic
independence give them personal autonomy and the power of decision making.
Economic independence exercises freedom of choice and action. Studies have
shown that a decline in their employment adversely affects their fertility,
9
mortality and nutrition. It has been advocated by many researchers(Amartya
Sen, 1990) that independent earning opportunities reduce the economic
dependence of women on man and increases their bargaining power. Even
where there is a male earner, women's earning form a major part of the income
of poor households. Moreover, a women contribute to a larger share of what
they earn to basic family maintenance then men, thus increases in women`s
income translates more directly into better child health, nutrition and family
well being.

Besides, women’s participation in work is an indicator of their status in a

society. Thus the economic contribution is related to their status and role in the
family and in the society. If a woman is not economically self dependent, she
can never claim an equal status with man. The problem of poverty cannot be
tackled without providing opportunity of productive employment to women.
Women's participation in the labour force also brings about changes in
awareness and attitudes, which may be have long term benefits such as health
and education programmes, reduction in birth rate etc. Economic independence
of women serves as a necessary weapon for them to injustice and
discrimination.

Economic development as one component of sustainable development, is

unthinkable without the involvement of women. Women participation in labour
force is a major benefit for the country and for oneself too. Economic growth
goes hand in hand with emancipation of women. Thus increasing women`s
capability and employing them is the surest way to contribute to economic
growth and overall development. Increasing rates of women participation have
enabled developing countries India to embark on a path of higher growth.

10
Women are almost half of the world's population having enormous potential but
being under-utilized or on utilized for the economic development of the nation.
Half of the Indian constitutes women and only half of them are illiterate.
Women`s work participation is about one- third. Majority of them are involved
in unorganised and domestic sector. Women's work sustains the society
economically. They run households, rear children and perform economic and
non economic activities within the families. We see them working in offices,
farms and factories, but all their time, there works/ contributions remain
invisible. Their work is taken for granted and their contribution to the survival/
betterment of the family and the society is it regarded a natural outcome their
caring, nurturing and self-effecting nature. The established notions on women's
work in the private sphere cannot be accepted as a contribution to the nation`s
economy, are it is not paid for,' women are neither producers; nor capable of
had physical labour," that ‘ women’s economic status is linked to their family`s
economic status and that ‘ men are earner, so they are heads of the households’’.
But the fallacies in these statements have already been exposed. UN
commission on status of women says “ women constitute half of the world's
population, accomplish about two-thirds of its work hours, receive one tenth of
the world’s income." Report of the committee on the status of women in India,
1974, known as' towards equality' highlighted the neglect of women's
contribution to economic activities. It clearly stated the transition to a modern
economy had meant the exclusion of an increasing number of women from
active participation in the productive process and contribution of women
working in the productive process and working for no Returns and no
recognition.

In India, female has been an important segment of the workforce. With the
changing socio-economic scenario, women`s productive roles have assumed
new dimensions. The observance international women's year in the last quarter

11
of 20th century was a historic landmark in the calendar of women`s progress.
Frankly speaking, it was in the recognition of crucial importance and need that
women's participation has always been necessary for the success of social and
economic development. Over the years, the main objective of the policies of the
Government of India with regard to female labour has been to remove the
handicaps under which they work, to strengthen their bargaining capacity, to
improve their wages and working conditions, to augment facilities for them.

In India, where the economy has been growing rapidly over the past 30 years,
recent statistics appear to show that women's workforce participation rates have
declined or it can be said that women's participation in the workforce has been
remarkable low as compared to men.

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SIGNIFICANCE OF WOMEN EMPLOYMENT:

Women who contribute almost half in India's demography, account for very less
in India's labour force. But it is important for women to be a part of the
workforce for the following reasons:-

1. Increase in growth rate:

10% increase in women participation leads to a country like India to boost its
GDP by $700 billion in 2025, translating to 1.4 percent per year added growth
rate. Besides, as per American think tank McKinsey, global Institute, the Indian
economy can rise to 2.9 trillion USD by 2025 if women are made of the
workforce.

2. Overall development of the society:

The main advantage of women employment is that there we on overall
development of the society. The money that women earn doesn't only help them
and or their family, but it also help develop the society.

3. National development:
As Swami Vivekanand says," the best thermometer to the progress of a nation is
in the treatment of her women." women are increasingly participating in the
national development process. They are making the nation proud by their
understanding performance in almost every sphere.

4. Economic Benefits:
Unlike earlier days women stayed in home do only kitchens stuffs, nowadays
they roam outside and also earn money like the male members. Thus
employment helps them to stand on their own legs, become independent and
also to earn for their family which grows countries economy.

13
5. Reduction in Poverty:
Women employment also reduces property. Sometimes, the money earned by
the male member of the family is not sufficient to meet the demands of the
family. If both husband and wife will be earning then there would be less
poverty issue in the family and the added earnings of women will help the
family to come out of poverty trap. Thus their quality of life would be
enhanced.

6. Women are Equally Competent and Talented:

Women are equally competent. They are such talented as men. And there are
certain jobs where women are considered as irreplaceable. It has been found that
the women can take care of the family in a more better way as compared to
men. And as the country's future totally depends on the children's thus it is
necessary to employ them to make them financially independent.

7. Proper Utilisation of India's Demographic Advantage:

India's demographic advantage will be of no use if women are not made part of
the workforce. That is why it is essential to ensure that more women enter the
labour force.

8. Reduction in Gender Inequality:

Women's participation in employment can help reduce gender inequality.
Gender inequality is the idea and situation the women and men are not equal. It
refers to an equal treatment or perceptions of individuals wholly or partly due to
their gender. This issue of gender inequality is one of which has been publicly
reverberating through Society for decades. The problem of inequality in
employment is one of the most pressing issues today. Thus women employment
helps in reducing gender inequality.

14
9. Helps in financial Independence and enhances decision making power:
Employment provides financial Independence to women. Financial
Independence is the ability to earn one`s own living. It is important for every
individual to be financially independent. More, so women. Women who are
financially independent can not only contribute to the everybody expenses of
the household but also help to meet the families financial goals.
Financially independent people are capable of taking own decisions and do not
have to depend on anybody. This increases the self- dependence and self-
respect and make them able to face any kinds of situation in life. Besides being
financially independent, will enable them to self sufficiently fulfill their wishes
and enhance their skills. Reducing financial dependence of women on their men
counterparts, will make them significant part of the human resources. Thus to
achieve all those above mentioned benefits women employment is necessary.

10. To Increase Status of Women or Self- Identity:

It is the most important factor controls the quality of women's life. It will give
them a better chance to say in the home as well as in the society. When they are
financially stable, then they can bear their expense and do not need to seek
money from their partners. Earning money will give them a sense of
accomplishment and self identity and allows them to evolve as a better and
independent human being, because having our own self identity in the society is
very important for their own growth and confidence. Working outside home
helps women to maintain and develop their sense of self.
Besides, women who can support the needs of the family financially becomes a
role model of their children. When children see their mother is earning money,
there are also motivated to stand on their own feet. They see good ethic in their
own home and want to follow it. This increases their status in the home as well
as in the society.

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11. Reduction in Socio Economic Exploitation:
No one should have to tolerate domestic violence or abuse, much less because
they are financially dependent on their parents. Therefore it is extremely
important that every woman becomes financially independent so that they never
have to feel helpless in life. And if they are provided with employment there
will be less dependent on her spouse. Hence their socio-economic exploitation
will be reduced.

12. Social securities:

Employment in organised sector provide social securities to woman like pension
and Maternity benefits etc.

13. Change in attitude and awareness:

When more and more women participate in the labour force, it will bring about
a change in attitude, which may have long term benefits search as health and
education programmes, reduction in birth rate etc.

14. Personal Improvement and Creativity:

Financial Independence provides us with free independent mind which gives us
freedom to explore our skills and talents and ultimately brings our base in us.
Independence can help increase our self value and self esteem. This happens
exact in case of women also, thus they should be provided with employment.

15. Women Employment Serves as an Important Determinant of Women

Empowerment:
Empowerment is just not just a word or to provide facilities. It is beyond that. It
is a multidimensional process which should enable individual or a group of
individuals or to realize their full identity and powers in all spheres of life.
Women empowerment refers to the creation of an environment for women

16
where they can make decisions of their personal benefits as well as for the
society, or in other words it refers to increasing and improving the social,
economic, political and legal strength of the women, to ensure equal right to
women and to make them confident enough to claim their rights. It is the
empowerment of women which helps them to take their own decisions by
breaking all personal limitations of the society and family. It means
emancipation of women from the vicious grips of social, economic, political,
caste, gender-based discrimination. It means granting women the freedom to
make life choices. It is to empower women by promoting their participation in
all areas and sectors to build stronger economies, improve their quality of life
and bring gender equality. Women need fresh and more capable environment so
that they can take their own decision in every area whether for themselves,
family, e society or country. The goal of women empowerment is simply
providing strength to them.
India is very famous country known for its cultural heritage, traditions,
civilization, religion, geographical features from the ancient time, on the other
hand, it is also popular as a male chauvinistic nation. Women are given first
priority in India however on the other hand they were badly treated in the family
and Society. They are limited only for the household chores or understand
responsibilities of home and family unaware of their rights and own
development.

What age women constitute half power of the country so in order to make this
country a fully powerful country, women empowerment is necessary and it is a
prerequisite for creating a good Nation. Employment gives economic leads to
employment status to women and economic status gives way to social status and
thereby empowerment. As employment leads to empowerment, thus women
employment is considered as an important determination of women
empowerment.

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OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:

1. To compare the status of women in different period.

2. To study the determinants of women employment and relationship with
women employment and economic development.
3. To analyze and interpretation the trends of women employment in India.
4. To study the barriers of women employment /problems faced by working
women.

18
DATA SOURCES AND METHODOLOGY:

The main data surveys used in this paper are the employment and
unemployment surveys(EUS) of the NSS. NSSO carries out such surveys once
in almost every five years covering about 5 laks individuals. The NSS reports of
the 43rd (1987-88), 50th(1993-1994), 55th(1999-2000), 61st (2004-05), 66th
(2009-11), 68th (2011-12), 70th (2017-18) rounds have been used to lookout the
trends and patterns of female workforce participation in the urban and rural
areas. NSS provides four different employment estimates based on three
approaches to activity classification (usual status, current weekly status and
current daily status). NSS defines ‘principal status’ (PS) as “ the activity status
on which a person spent relatively longer time during the 365 days preceding
the date of surveys”.This is similar to the definition of ‘main worker in the
census’. A person is said to be employed in ‘ subsidiary status’ (SS) “ if he is
engaged in any activity for only part of the year ( similar to the concept of
marginal worker in the census”). If a person is working either under PS or SS ,
he is said to be counter under ‘Usual Status or Usual Principal Subsidiary
Status (i.e both combined) . This paper uses the employment estimates based on
usual status (or usual principal subsidiary status, PS+SS).

19
CHAPTER – 2

20
REVIEW OF LITERATURE:

John K. (2013) in his article entitled “Domestic Women Workers in

Urban Informal sector,” described poverty as main reason why many women
and children engage in domestic work. The reasons for entering in domestic
work were Family problems including rural and male unemployment; disputes
at home, ill treatment and loss of parents have resulted in their leaving the
house to work as domestic worker. Women those who were widow, separated
from husbands or those with alcoholic husbands are compel to work for the
survival of their children. Sharma (2006) reported that there are no standard
norms that decide working conditions for domestic workers. They work from
8 to 18 hours a day while live-in domestic workers are on call 24 hours each
day. Article further discussed about legislation on protection of domestic
workers that domestic workers are excluded from labour welfare laws. As
such domestic works are currently not within the scope of most of the labour
laws. So women domestic workers cannot demand rights for their decent
working condition minimum wages, social security, hours of work; weekly
offs paid leaves or medical benefits among others. Article quoted SEWA
survey which showed that live-out domestic workers do not have social
security.

Chamraj K. (2007)in the article titled, “Domestic workers in Silicon

City” described struggle of domestic workers in Karnataka for decent wages
and condition of work. It reveals that wages are fixed for a certain amount of
work, but employers keep adding to the tasks and when asked for a leave the
employer cut the wages. Women domestic workers are not allowed to touch
the vessels in which the employers’ food is kept as well as women are not
supposed to enter the kitchen. Some women employers wash all the vessels
washed by the maid again by tamarind to purify them. The article further
claims that the domestic work needs to be recognized and treated in human

21
and dignified manner. The minimum wage notification specifies that for a six-
day week: and one task for 45 minutes per day should receive INR 249, one
hour tasks, INR 299, and 8-hour day INR 1.699 (all per month); 10 percent
more for families larger than four persons, and overtime at double the rate.
The article further mentions about the StreeJagruti Samiti study
recommended that the minimum wage should be easy to understand, time-
based and adequate, and it makes the case for an hourly wage to simplify
the calculation. The study also demands social security and a tripartite board
of representatives of the government, employers and workers. Moreover, the
article also suggests that the employer has no right to conduct his/her
enterprise if he/she cannot pay his/her employee a minimum subsistence wage
and that non-payment of minimum wages is forced labour under Article 23 of
the Constitution.

Sinha S. (2002), in the chapter, “women in unorganized sector:

Mapping Needs” has described common characteristics of women workers in
unorganized sector which are characterized by laborious work and long
working hours, poor living condition, low and irregular income, lack of capital
and assets, indebtedness, borrowing at exploitative interest, low bargaining
power, poor working condition, lack of social security protection etc. The
characteristics of unorganized sector workers itself describes the problems
faced by women in unorganized sector. Further, the author has stated
importance of insurance in the life of women workers in unorganized sector
as crises are recurrent fact in the lives of the unorganized sector workers
and each crises leaves them weaker and more vulnerable if the facilities of
insurance was available to them they would be able to spread this over a
longer period, so that they could pay for it during the times in which they
were earning. According to Sinha, insurance can help to compensating the loss
on income during sickness, accident and maternity and compensating loss in

22
case of death.

According to Charmes (2000), there is an overlap between working in the

informal economy and being poor: a higher percentage of people working in
the unorganized sector, relative to the organized sector, are poor. There is a
correlation between working in the unorganized sector and poverty: a higher
percentage of people working in the unorganized sector are poor compared to
those who are employed in organized sector. Further, this overlap is gendered.
The more women are in unorganized sector who are poor compared to that of
men. However, it is important to recognize the fact that there is no simple
relationship between working in the unorganized sector and poverty or
working in the organized sector and prosperity. Unorganized workers
typically lack the social protection benefits which are available to the
organized sector, such as worker benefits and health insurance. They also
work under irregular and casual contracts. When the data has closely
analyzed, the precise relationship between unorganized sector employment
and the level of poverty appears when unorganized sector employment is
segregated by status of employment like employer, self-employed, or worker,
and the gender.

Upadhyay V. (2007) conducted a study on Employment and Earnings

In Urban Informal Sector in Arunachal Pradesh focusing on investigating the
quality of employment in the informal sector in terms of earnings, job-
security, working hours, and the general socio-economic conditions of the
informal sector workers. The study also examined the linkages, if any,
between formal education and earnings in different segments of the informal
sector. Major findings of the study revealed that the exploitation of wage
workers in the informal sector was higher than that of the formal sector. It is
also important to note that the linkages of the informal sector units with
government and other public systems by way of regulation, input and utility

23
supplies were found to be more or less non-existent. Study also found that
very insignificant proportion have access to electricity and Institutional credit
and no one was provided access to allotted site and capital assistance for
government. Majority of the workers in the job markets in urban areas were
migrants. The share of the male migrant workers was as high as 92 per cent,
while that of women workers was only 26.2 per cent. But it was found that the
share of female workers was much more among the non-migrant workers.
Only 25 per cent of the total samples surveyed were self- employed, while the
rest were hired workers. As far as the payments of wages were concerned,
only 68 per cent of the hired workers received their wages in cash, while the
rest 32 per cent received it partly in cash and partly in kind.

Director General Labour Bureau, Chandigarh (2006)conducted an

Evaluation Study on The Implementation of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948
and Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 in Stone Breaking and Stone Crushing
Industry in Rajasthan focusing on the extent to which the provisions of the
Minimum Wages Act have been enforced in establishments and awareness
about the employers and workers on the same. The study also focused on the
problems faced by the enforcement machinery in the enforcement of the Act.
Major findings of the study revealed that all women workers belonged to
unskilled category. It was observed that all the workers covered under the
study were paid on time rated basis with monthly pay period. The minimum
and maximum per day earnings earned by directly employed skilled and semi-
skilled workers were between INR 68.07 & 423.07 and INR 61.54 &
Rs.207.40 respectively. All the women workers were employed in the
unskilled category and their per day earnings ranged between INR 60.00 and
109.23. About 47.8 per cent of the total units surveyed paid lower than the
prescribed minimum wages to their workers. About 89 per cent of the
sampled workers were not aware about the Minimum Wages Act, 1948. The

24
inspections by Labour Inspectors for the enforcement of the Minimum Wages
Act, 1948 in the establishments under scheduled employment of ‘Stone
Breaking and Stone Crushing’ were found to be very low.

Sethi (2004) conducted a study on regional advancement and socio-

economic status of agricultural labour in Haryana with the major
objectives of studying the changing socio - economic conditions of
agricultural labourers, examining the nature and extent of employment of
agricultural labourers in context of regional advancement and the working
conditions of agricultural labourers and to study the factors that affected the
socio-economic status of agricultural labourers in context of agricultural
advancement. 300 respondents were selected from six sampled villages. Data
were collected by using interview schedule. The major findings of the study
revealed that majority of them were below poverty line, landless and working
as casual labourers. Permanent labourers performed all types of agricultural
activities along with the household activities of the cultivator with no fixed
hours of work and did not get extra wages for the extra hours of work.
Majority of labourers received daily wages between INR 80-100 per day.
Wages of female agricultural labourers, were less as compared to their male
counterparts for similar activities. Agricultural labourers were working in
miserable conditions i.e. without benefit of leave, medical aid etc. They were
being punished at work place in the form of scolding and reduction in wages.
Advancement of the region had positive impact on the socio-economic status.
It leads to: i) An increase in the wages of agricultural labourers, better
educational level of children, reduction in practice of child labour and
drudgery in agriculture last but not the least, better awareness of rural
development.
Mohiuddinand Singh (1996) conducted a study on problems of rural
women workers in readymade garments in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

25
The main objective of study was to ascertain their working conditions, job
opportunities, income patterns, wages and nature of work. Four hundred
respondents, 200 each from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka state were
selected as a sample of the study. Semi structure interview schedules, case
study and observations were the mode of data collection. The findings
revealed that the working conditions and the other facilities were stated to be
satisfactory only for those who were working with units/centers established
under any Government scheme, whereas, those who were working in the
unorganized sector, the working conditions were voiced as “unsatisfactory.”
The main problems cited were (i) payment in irregular installments (ii)
low/poor quality of raw material (iii) employer’s bad treatment, and(iv) low
demand for the trade.

Pore (1991) reported the socio-economic condition of women workers

in garment industry and the electronic industry in Thane and Pune, with the
main objectives of comparing the working condition and living condition, and
to study self-perception of women working in garment and electronic
industry. The sample of the study consisted of 134 women working in
garment industry and 132 women working in electronic industry. The women
working in garment industry were stitching which was considered as
unskilled work by the manager of the industry. The major findings of the
study revealed that Most of the women in garment industry were paid piece-
rates. Most of the women from electronic industry and half of the women
amongst women working in garment industry received bonus of anything
between INR 50 to INR 500 working condition with reference to pay scale
and social security were definitely better in the modern electronics industry
than those in the traditional garment industry. Women workers either in
industry were not very articulate about discrimination against and were more
or less satisfied with what they earned under their given situation of skill and

26
educational level and in general situation of unemployment among women.
Women workers were quite anxious to avoid conflict in the two roles and
through that they could reconcile the two roles better if they had certain types
of job. The nature and production of the unit did make significant differences
in the nature of employment the conditions of work and the earning of women
workers and the monthly earnings of women workers differed significantly as
did their education level. Most of the women were not aware of the labour
laws concerning women and most employers flout them with impunity.

Mohammed Y. (2011)conducted the Mapping Study of Home Based

Workers in Uttar Pradesh, With the major objectives of identifying and map
the home based workers and the organizations representing them, to prepare a
status report of the Home Based Workers in the above industrial sectors with
regard to the wages, housing, employer-employee relationship, occupational
health, social security and lack of skills and to give recommendations on
organizing the Home Based Workers and to suggest a strategy for changing
the current occupational status. Observation and interview schedule was used
for data collection of the study. The study focuses on the home based sector
only in three districts and covers a small sample size, so findings of the study
are specific and cannot be generalized. The study reveals that all Home Based
Workers in three selected districts for the study have similar socio-economic
conditions and are facing same problems like Health, Education, Child
labour, Minimum wages, lack of awareness with regard to the Govt.
beneficiary schemes for poor and BPL. All related govt. departments and
boards have not been playing their role effectively for the support of the
Home Based Workers. Although the Trade Unions are available in three
districts, they are not in an active condition; they are going on their way or are
busy with their political interest. In all the three trades the Home Based
Workers are living in a very low economic condition. They are getting little

27
wages so they cannot even afford two meals a day for their families. Although
the govt. has many social security schemes they are not able to access these
facilities. Lack of awareness is the biggest issue or problem for the Home
Based Workers.

Kalpana Hiralal(2010) conducted a study on Indian home-based

workers residing in South Africa. The major objectives of the study were
studying lives of home-based workers and the challenges they confront in the
labour market. Sample of the study consisted of twenty-five women home
based workers. Quantitative as well as qualitative data were collected by
using in- depth interview, questionnaire and focus group discussion as tool for
data collection. Major findings of the study revealed that over 80 percent of
women were married others were divorced, single and unmarried mothers. The
educational profile of women was low. Women worked from home and were
engaged in variety of economic activities i.e. bottling home-made chutney and
pickles, selling, floral arrangements, bead work, craft work and embroidery
etc. Many of them complained of their small working space and strongly felt
that it was not conducive to running a successful business from home.

Jhabvala and Shaikh (2008)conducted a study on wage fixation for

home-based piece- rate workers- A technical study based on a survey of
workers in Gujarat, India, the main objectives of the study were to examine
in detail the work processes and the payment of wages of selected home-
based work in Gujarat, and to suggest a methodology for fixation of a
minimum wage for home-based piece-rate work. Case study was designed to
uncover hidden factors in the determination of real piece rates and resulting
impact on the remuneration levels for home-based workers. The beedi rollers,
incense stick makers, cardboard box producers, the cement bag cleaners, bidi
makers, papad rollers, flower garland makers, garment workers etc. women
were selected as sample of the study. Majority of the sample had family

28
income of between INR 1000 to INR 2000a month. However, the earning of
the worker herself, falling between INR 200-300 per month is well below
both the poverty line and scheduled minimum wages.

Maurya (2008) reported about the problems and situation of home based
worker discussed in the convention on home based workers in Delhi. She
reported that women are engaged in home based work like making beedis,
doing zari, charkha or other handloom work, stitching labels, food processing
etc. Majority women home based workers work on piece-rate basis, which is
characterized by irregular or seasonal availability of work and delayed or
reduced payment by agents or contractor. They are the worker with no
protection, social security, benefits or insurance etc. The work for home based
workers is mostly facilitated through middle men and contractors. They are at
the bottom of a long chain of employers. Home based women workers shared
their experience in the convention. In that they reported that they suffered
from health problems as a consequence of the work they did. Those who work
with limestone have boils and long lasting wounds on their hands. Those
who work with glass suffered cuts on their hand which take a long time to
heal. The women who work with sequins and embroidery suffered vision
impairment some of them have even lost their eye sights. Women had to face
abuse and misbehavior from the contractors.

Pant (2005) conducted participatory research on multiple citizenship

identities of women beedi workers, to explore the interplay of multiple
citizenship identities of women beedi workers in Rajnandgaon in Chhatisgarh.
Study broadly aimed to examine the ways the citizenship identities of home
based women beedi workers are reproduced trough the multiple structural
locations they occupy viz.labour market household and locality; by focusing
on the experiences and meaning that they give to the particular location. Total
50 women workers from Ram Nagar Ward no5 and Shankarpura Ward no7

29
from Rajnandgaon, participated in study.

Iqbal (2004)conducted a National Study on Beedi Workers - an

Ergonomic Approach with the major objectives of ergonomic intervention of
Beedi Workers, their occupational health hazards and to improve working
environment and unhygienic conditions of Beedi Workers. Total 302 beedi
workers from Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh &
Tamil Nadu. Various methods such as Observation, Questionnaire and
Anthropometric measurement for data collection of the study. Major findings
of the study revealed that it was observed that occupational hazards like
neck pain, shoulder pain, chest pain, elbow pain and back pain etc. was
highly predominant.

Surati (2001) conducted a study on work related problems of women

workers in textile industry. The objectives were to study the welfare facilities,
health problems of the women working in textile industry, the work culture of
organization and participation of women in the process of decision making in
trade union activities and the perception of working women towards
harassment at work place along with the situation of women and inter
personal relation with other employee.

Singh P. (1999) conducted a study on subcontracted units and women

workers in the garment industry with the major objective of conducting focus
group discussion with factory women workers in sub contracted garment units
and women home based workers operating for garment units in Ahmadabad.

30
CHAPTER – 3

31
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF STATUS OF WOMEN:

The status of women in India has been many ups and downs. The 20th
century has been many changes in the Global Arena, economic, scientific and
social. Women have been given equal opportunities to compete with men and
one another. In the last century and the every 20th century women where mostly
relegated to the home and there place was the kitchen. The 20th century was
witnessed a great deal of independence and autonomy for many centuries.
Women have been equal fighters for freedom. They have equal demanded foe
received equality and education and their lies the secret of their success.
Education and the awareness that comes with it have enabled this gender to
fight their cause. They have merged out of their kitchens and taken their places
along with the men in becoming supplementary bread winners. Now they are
manager of their home and family as well as part of the workforce. They have
penetrated almost all spheres of activity and figure prominently in all walks of
life be it education, health, politics, science, social work or law. Today's women
are joint partners in the world scheme. Indian women have their place even in
the police. Army and now the first batch of pilots have also been merged.

India has always accorded respect to its women as can be seen in history.
We have heard some great women such as Rani of Jhansi, Mirabai, Indira
Gandhi etc. Who have been acknowledged as leaders and thinkers of our
society. In spite of these great women, the largest parts of the female species we
are not accorded their basic rights. It was only the pioneering effects of
mahatma Gandhi that lead to the emancipation of Indian women as of today
there are still large percentage of women especially in the rural areas who need
to understand their rights and advantages. India is striving to provide the women
equal status in society. Today women can be proud that she is a homemaker
and an equal partner to the progress of our society.
32
 Indian society is undergoing a process of social changes. Increasing
social awareness due to the liberal opportunities and facilities in the field of
education, social legislation, healthy and active participation in a democratic
political system has changed the social cultural values in general. The British
regime and the post independence have brought in many social changes in India.
The old order has changed, yielding place to the new, thus bringing a
perceptible transformation in society. The transformation hub brought them
both prospects and problems with the advancement of Science and Technology,
new technologies have come into our daily routine and new wants have
increased. Gone are the days when people thought that outside works was meant
for men folk, while the women were simply contented with their household
chores. Women’s emancipation gained momentum and they were considered
equal if not superior to men. But when all is said and done the status of women
in India had been fluctuating one sometimes encouraging and sometimes
discouraging. However, the present status of women in society is quite
encouraging and deserves careful study. While it is true that the known present
always be explained in terms of historical Origins it is almost certain that it is
impossible to study the present without reference to the past. For this reason
discussion of the historical background of the Indian women will be rewarding
and helpful.

1. Women in the pre independence period.

The history of India reveals distinct stages of rise and fall in the status of Indian
women. When you turn back to the Prehistoric Times, we see men and women
in hordes and leading a nomadic life. Women were then treated on par with
them. Women's role at home and outside was important as that of men. Later,
when the custom of marriage arose, their developed in turn their homes and the
family. It was the woman who reared the children to care of the household and
performed the general demonstratic labour. Leaving men to do most of the

33
outside work and so women mostly confined themselves within four walls of
the house, as a result to which slowly, they were made to withdraw their roles
from the outside world. In the cycle of time, their values were forgotten; status
degraded and position relegated; and they were looked down upon as an inferior
creature.
But this outlook changed with the advent of the vedic period. We can say
that women in India reached one of their glorious stages during this
time(sharma,1981) though the father held supreme sway in the affairs of the
family, the mother also enjoyed a high position, and see considerable authority
in the household affairs. The Aryans sought cooperation after their women in
almost every walks of life and they were given full freedom for their
development. They enjoyed the property rights and hard access the property of
their fathers and husbands. There discussed political and social problems freely
with men. They composed and chanted vedic hymns at the holy sacrifices.
Widow re-marriage was in existence. They also had the privilege of
adoption(kapadia,1968). There was no discrimination between men and women
before law(shastri,1954).
The position of the Indian women during the later Vedic period was not
very encouraging. Once again their position deteriorated considerably. Women
become entirely dependent on men, and were subjected to the authority of their
fathers, husbands and sons in the different periods of their life as daughters,
wives and mothers. Their education, religious and rights and privileges were
curbed. Due to social, economical and political changes, women lost their
position in the society. Subsequently unnecessary and unwarranted customs
such as purdan, sati, child Marriage, polygamy etc. The women status at home
and outside declined women subjugation was predominant in the patriarchal
society.

34
 All the decisions were taken by the men they did not bother to inform
their decision to their wives, rather they did everything according to their own
will and pleasure(Boserup,1970).

2. Women under British rule:

The spread Christianity among the Indians with the British conquest of Indian
and the network of educational institutions in India established by the Britishers
created a far reaching transformation. As a result, a new class of educated
Indians came into existence. It was a section of this class which became the
vanguard of all progressive movements in India. The spread of western type of
education enabled women to realize their subordinate position, and it persuaded
them to regain their legitimate status. A new value system was involved which
recognized women and unique personality ( Majumdar, 1965). It was really an
event of decisive significance for their future development. Educated women
gradually came forward demanding equal rights with men.

3. Reform movements:
The awakening gave birth to many reforms, social movements and religious
organizations which worked hard to spread education among women, to
encourage widow remarriage; to improve the overall living conditions of
widows; to prevent child marriage; to cast away the ‘Purdha’ and to enforce
monogamy and the like. Raj Ram Mohan Roy a great social reformer of
modern India fought bravely against the social evils prevailing in the Indian
society. He organized the historic agitation against the in human custom of Sati .
In 1829, the Sati abolition act was passed by the Government. To raise the
status of women, Raja Ram Mohan Ray demanded that they were given the
right of inheritance and property (Majumdar , 1965). In 1891, ‘ The Age of
Consent Act ‘ was passed with forbid the marriage of a girl before the age of 12.

35
In 1937, the Indian Legislature passed to the Hindu Women , ‘The Property
Act’ which conceded to the Hindu Widow , a share in the Husband`s property.
Gandhi, Raj Ram Mohan Ray, ISWAR Chandra Vidya Sagar and other
enlighted men and women worked for the upliftment of women gradually,
women also began to play an active role in India`s struggle(freedom). They
participated in large numbers in the agitation against ‘Partition of Bengal’and
the ‘Home Rule Movement’. More than any other factors , participation of
women , in the national movement contributed to their awakening and
emancipation . Women`s struggle for equality took a big step forward with the
coming of independence (Majumdar, 1969.)
Women post-independence was won by India, there was an earnest
attained to improve the position of women in the country. Article 15 of the
Indian Constitution guaranteed complete equality of men and women.
Legislation was reported to help women. The Hindu code bill gave the women
the right to share the property of their parents. Many social evils were removed.
Widow re-marriage was encouraged and child marriages were prohibited. The
right of divorce was also given to women(Jain, 1988).
However, many of these rights were more on papers than in actual
practice. The traditional customs were so strongly rooted in the minds of people,
that they did not easily take these new reforms. When we start making a
comparison between their role and status of women in modern India and in
other countries of the world , particularly in the matter of emancipation of
women, we cannot be stuck with certain unexpected contrasts. Though the
status of Indian women has changed, it does not prove satisfactory(Desai,1957).
Indian society has all along been a male dominated society, where the women`s
roles are been confined to the home. Their role limits to procreation and
upbringing of children and catering to the needs of men folk. In fact, in all the
ages, women did not have any independent existence of their own. They existed
for men and always played a second fiddle to them.

36
CHAPTER – 4

37
DETERMINANT OF WOMEN EMPLOYMENT:

There are various determinant of uneven distribution of women

employment in India. Some of them are important. They are economic, social,
demographic, cultural and political. All these determinants differ in different
periods and in different countries. The demographic determinants is composed
of birth rate, age structure , age at death or longevity of life, migration , and
average size of the family. Economic determinant are type of economy,
availability of employment opportunities and levels of income are important.
Age of marriage and general health standards , level of literacy and education ,
status of women in the society are socially important ( Murty, K.R. AND
Vijayalakhsmi, P.1974).Cultural factor is related to non-governing family size,
size of paternal family, preference for male children, expenses of raising
children etc. Political determinant includes political stability and attitudes of the
status towards nationality (Chandna, R.C. and M.S Sidhu, 1980).

1. Demographic determinant:
The chief among the demographic determinant which play a profound
role in shaping the employment pattern are
a. Fertility
b. Mortality
c. Migration
Countries having birth rates are characterized an age structure where
population is heavily loaded of children who normally are non-workers and
hence the proportion of workers in the total population remains small
comparison to those countries which have low birth rates and hence the low
dependency ratio ( Chandana, R.C. & M.S.Sidhu , 1980). Age specific
participation in various occupation is another aspect of population structure
38
which comes under the influence of fertility rates. The participation of the under
twenties and even under fifteens trends to be relatively high in countries of high
fertility rates , where as is not of any substantial magnitude in areas of low
fertility as there is no comparable compulsion to take up some gainful
employment at the early age. As a result of high participation of the youngsters
is a relative predominance of petty service and wage labourers in the overall
educational structure. This is because the unemployment makes people badly
job hungry and the lack of education and training acts as a bar in the way of
taking up specialized occupation requiring skilled and well trained personnel (
Trewartha, G.T.1969).

a. Fertility:
The fertility rates in the rural segment of a population are generally high
as compared to those in the urban segment. It follows that in principle the
fertility differentials are capable of gradually augmenting the rural components
of the population. Predominantly agricultural economy , there is an increase in
the fertility where as the high fertility creates hinders in the female
employment(Treartha, G.T.1969)

In recent years much attention has been paid to the relationship between
population growth and economic development. One method of checking birth
rates is to increase female employment, as it may tend to bring down the fertility
level.

b. Mortality:
Mortality is the second important demographic determinant, which
influence the employment. The countries with a high average age at death, the
proportion of the population in the working age groups is reactively high and
hence the magnitude of working force here is also large in comparison to those

39
countries where the life span is short and where many workers die in their active
age (Chandana, R.C. and M.S.Sidhu, 1980).If the mortality rates in juvenile
groups are lower than the fertility rates, the transference from the youngest age
group to employment slab will be larger and this slab will be consequently tend
to grow in size(Siddiqui, F.A.1978).

This work participation appears to have grown faster in countries of low

mortality rates as is the case in European countries. In European countries , the
female work participation rate is high because in these countries due to
occupational hazards , mortality incidence is higher among males (Dorn,
H.F.1950).It has been observed that if the mortality declines or the age of
retirement is postponed, there are a few older people to withdraw from the
employment and in that case the average age of workers tend to
increase(Mukherjee, S.B.1976).

c. Migration :
Migration is the third demographic factors which influence the proportion
of the working population. Migration of workers largely takes place in the
economically active age groups(Clark, J.I.1972).The areas suffering from out
migration have a low proportion of working population and area characterized
by an influx of workers display a higher degree of working force.

Average size of the family produces a somewhat similar effect on the

magnitude of the working force into two typical situations. The small size of
family releases many female workers for employment and pushes up the
proportion of workers in a society devoid of prejudices against female
employment and also having employment opportunities for the women. This is
true of the societies of the developed world, the large size of the family
produces such economic exigencies that necessitate the participation of

40
maximum numbers in the economic struggle. This too pushes up the proportion
of workers in the total population.

It was observed that migration is also an important factor influencing the

women`s employment in the ESCAP( Economic and Social Commission for
Asia and the Pacific) region. Here women migrants are themselves
economically motivated or simply accompanied like Malaysia, Indonesia,
Thailand and Philippines, single women moving to the cities in search of
employment is a significant component of rural-urban migration stream. In
contrast to this the countries which discourage the female migration to the cities
result the decline of female employment. The countries like United States and
France, which show the highest increase in the active population, are due to
high level of immigration. In Switzerland, Germany , and UK the variations in
female activity and migration play a relatively minor role in employment.

Technically, any change in the composition of employment due to change

in age structure is marked as the direct effect of demographic factors of fertility,
mortality and migration. Variation in fertility, mortality and migration affect the
size and structure of the employment through their impact on the size and age
structure of the population. Another important demographic factor which plays
a very important role on work participation rate is age. Changes in the age
structure of the population causes significant change in the quality and character
of the workforce and burden of dependency in a country. The difference
between the male and female work participation rate is quite striking. The
female rate is considerably lower than the male rate for each group. The
female participation rate depends on other factors also such as -their marriage
status, number of children born to them, social custom as well as attitude of
society.

41
 There are four major generalization that have just been made to
developed and developing countries. First, the participation of females in
occupations is higher in developed countries. The principle explanation is that
there are more opportunities for gainful employment in urbanized economics,
but on the other hand, agricultural societies make very extensive use of female
as unpaid family workers . Secondly, the participation for female tends to reach
a peak in the late teenage or early twenties, just before marriage or the onset of
child bearing. After the age of 25 years the women`s work participation rates
tend to decline due to their more engagement in household work and child care.
Thirdly, in developed countries the greater participation of women clearly
shows itself in the premarital ages, and the ages after 35 years. In the latter case,
as soon as their children are mature enough to be in school, they tend to re-
enter the workforce. The explanation for this may be as sociological as
economical. Female earners may be helping to earn money to put the children
through college, to save for old age or to complete payment on house. Although
besides this, they may also be seeking meaningful activity and a sense of self
worth after their children are no longer dependent on them. Fourthly,
employment rates at the older age are much higher in developing countries. In
the latter case, people at the older age have the privilege of retiring from the
work and spending their last years on pension and the saving incomes. In
contrast to this, in the former case person has to remain in the workforce as
long as their health permits.

2. Economic Determinant:
It is the second important determinant of employment. Among the
economic determinants of the size of working force, the type economy of an
area is significant. The nature of jobs available in the industrial societies is very
much different from those available in the agrarian economy. The factories and
the industries have their own demand on skill and education which delays the

42
entry into working force and hence the size of the working force in such
economies suffers a slowdown. By comparison, the nature of jobs in agricultural
economies, particularly in less developed realm, is such that education has little
functional value. Here the individual can start the work as soon as the family
exigencies demand his/her participation.

The current levels and types of employment in the developing countries

are directly reacted to skills, adaptability and training. Women are taking up
employment in modern sectoral as in these sectors the employment
opportunities for females are generally found to be rapidly increasing. But in
pre-industrial economy the industry is in its infancy, employment exists for
women in agriculture, handicrafts and personal services.

The existence of female employment in India is confined largely to

unskilled job. That is why female employment in India is higher in rural areas
and lower in urban areas, where as in developed countries, the employment
opportunities are higher in urban centers and lower in rural farms. This is
because in the developing nations women are probably not in a position to join
employment, mainly because they do not have the necessary education and also
free to work outside the home. This resulted in low levels of female
employment in urban activities.

The level of income and employment also affect activity rates. The
general level of income, having its expression in the form of economic
compulsions, may determine the proportion of workers in its own way.
Economic compulsions for participation in the economic struggle, which
normally occur in societies with low level of income, force very member of the
family male/female, young/old to participate in the economic struggle. Females
take up jobs to supplement income of the household. In times of inflation they

43
take up job to maintain the old real level of income. Thus each family may have
a national permanent income in view, if the transitory income is below that
level, wives may take up work and vice versa.

The availability of employment opportunities is another significant

economic determinant of the magnitudes of the working force in any area. The
less developed countries , where the incidence of unemployment is high, are
unable to provide ample employment opportunities to their multiplying
manpower and thus, have relatively small working force in comparison to the
developed countries where the employment opportunities are available for all
those persons who are willing to participate in economic activities and are, thus
able to become a part of the employment. That is why, the size of the workforce
in countries with limited employment potential remains comparatively low.

Efficiency of workers is another significant economic determinant. The

distribution of the working population by age and sex and by occupation of
workers is believed to have an effect on the efficiency of workers. The analysis
of the relation of sex ratio of economically active population and efficiency has
been found , since the physical capacities and of the male and female workers
are known to differ ;therefore the effect of changes in the sex ratio of work
participation depend on the occupational distribution of male and female
population.

In India, in low income regions of the states, all members of the family,
including children and women are bound tom engage in economic activities to
fulfill basic needs of food, housing and lodging. Moreover, higher percentage of
workers in agricultural sector does not mean that their economic standard will
be higher , due to economic limits , people mostly engaged themselves in lighter
activities in which wages are much lower since the mid -sixties the green

44
revolution, the problem of agricultural output increases and therefore, agro
based industries eg- rice, pulses, sugar was established. Such industries
provided work to the population in large number in both rural and urban areas.
As it is known that in small scale and cottage industries , a substantial number
of manual laborers are needed in comparison to larger scale industries. In the
areas where small scale industries are in practice , employment rates in
secondary activities will be higher than the areas having big plants in which the
worth of manual labour is replaced by machines. In recent years , various
labour saving appliances have made release of women from housework possible
and coupled with their desire for independence or for the economic betterment
of the family , females take up jobs and enter into labour supply.

3. Social Determinant:
Among various socially and culturally rooted determinants of the size of
the working population , marital status , level of literacy and education
undoubtedly claim the highest rank. Level of literacy and education influence
significantly the employment rates. The societies having high literacy rate are
prone to display low employment rates because of the acquisition of literacy and
education delays the entry of people into employment. Generally speaking , in
the developing countries , males are more literate than females , because in
these areas females are comparatively less free and do not have the
opportunities for formal schooling. The females have low status , low mobility,
lower freedom. Early marriage and large amount of domestic work . Moreover,
women`s education in rural areas does not get social approval. People with
better socio economic status are more literate than people at the lower levels.
This may be due to the necessity and comparability of getting a higher and
better education. The socially and economically more awaked sections are more
literate as compared to the backward people. Higher education makes it easier

45
for women to enter the employment, especially in the modern sectors of the
economy.

The status of women in the society and consequent approval or

disapproval of female participation in activities outside the four walls of the
house is another social determinant of magnitude of working force. This factor
may have little role to play in societies discriminating between the two sexes ,
this factor becomes important. Consequently in the countries where the
prejudices against the female mobility and participation in economic activities
prevail, the proportion of the working force remains low because women
constitutes almost half the population get excluded from this orbit of workers.

The female employment is influenced markedly by their marital status. It

is found that in developing countries the rate of employment is highest for
single women and lowest for the married with those of the widows and divorced
lying in between the two. The age at marriage influences the incidence of
participation in work in its own way. In the societies where the marriage takes
place early, the proportion of workers is relatively high. It is because the family
responsibilities create an urge for getting engaged in economically gainful
activities at an early age. However, this may be more true of males than
females. Among women who are single, the rate of work participation
corresponds rather so that for males. From ages 18 to 70 the employment rate
for single males and single female is very similar. In sharp differences to this,
females who are married and living with their husbands have much lower
participation rates at each age group. Where the women are married , but the
husbands are absent , the participation rates tends to be substantially higher.
They tend to be higher if the women are widowed and yet higher if they are
divorced. The participation rates for divorced women at each age tend to be
very nearly equal to those for single women.

46
 It may be noted that at every stage of life single women had the highest
employment rate than married women. The single women either unmarried or
not living with husbands are by and large dependent for their support in
themselves. The married women`s employment is however, high after the age of
35 or 40 because by then their children are mature enough to be in school and
these women tend to remain in the labour market. The probable reason of this
re-entry is to supplement the financial position of the family so that the children
may get higher education and at the same time there may be substantial savings
for old age.The employment rate of rural female is always high both among
married and unmarried. As long as they are unmarried they have to work in the
fields or in cottage industries to tend a supporting hands to their parents.
Marriage only brings a shift of responsibility , they then work to give support
either to their husbands or the in-laws. The marital status is also significant
determinant of female employment in urban areas. The widows or divorced
women have a higher employment rate than those of unmarried women and
culturally married women in urban areas. Levels of literacy and education
influence significantly the work participation rates. Urban females show a
similar trend even in a more pronounced way. Among them all graduates and
those with technical and non-technical diplomas , report for higher participation
rates than the illiterate.General standard of health of the people being and index
of their vitality also influences to some extend, work participation rate. It is
highly said “ Health is Wealth”. The ultimate aim of all economic policies is to
achieve a healthy nation. A healthy country can emerge any when there is an
adequate supply of balanced food , when people are not undernourished or
malnourished . It is really more important for the health of the country , that
there should be adequate nutrition, good sanitation, supply of pure water , and
lack of pollution. It is normally to be expected that a nation with good general
health conditions will display a higher participation rate than the nation with
poor condition.

47
CHAPTER – 5

48
ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF TREND OF
WOMEN EMPLOYMENT IN INDIA FROM 1987-88 TO 2017-
18:
The most comprehensive data on employment in India is collected by the
National Sample Organization (NSSO) through its quinquential surveys. The
estimate of employment in India , based on NSSO is conducted periodically (not
every year). In almost all countries especially in the developing parts , the male
participation rates are significantly higher than females. Same is also evident in
India as well; women participation rates in employment are almost half as
compared to men. In India, where the economy has been growing rapidly over
the past 30 years, recent statistics appear to show that women`s workforce
participation rates have declined. Women participation in the workforce has
been remarkable low as compared to men , however the role of women in
economic activity has been increasing in recent years.

It is explained in 7 aspects, such as

i. Male-Female workforce participation rate.

ii. Rural-urban workforce participation rate.
iii. Female labour force participation .
iv. Sectoral employment of female in India.
v. Educational level of working females.
vi. Average wage of rural and urban from 1993-94 to 2017-18.
vii. State level employment scenario.

49
 FIGURE 1 : MALE-FEMALE
WORKFORCE PARTICIPATION RATES
58
56
54
52
MALE WPR URBAN
50
MALE WPR RURAL
48
46
43rd 50th 55th 61st 66th 68th 70th
PERIOD : 1987-88 TO 2017-18

Source : Employment & unemployment surveys of NSS

Figure – 1 shows that all India level male workforce participation rate range
between 50-55 percent from 43rd round (1987-88) to 70th NSS round(2017-18) .
Corresponding rates for females are in the range of 22-29 percent. Male WPR
(work force participation rate) has remained more or less stable during the entire
study period . In comparison to the male WPR , female WPR reveals a slightly
more fluctuating trend . Female WPR has declined from 28.5 percent in 43 rd
round to 24.6 percent in the 70th round. The 61st round(2004-05) shows
significant increase in female WPR as compared to the earlier rounds. Several
scholars (Chandrasekhar and Ghosh, 2007 ; Srivastava & Srivastava, 2009)
have argued that globalization could be one of the important reason for this
increase in female employment. Analysis of trend in labour force participation
by sex indicates the decline is largely observed among females than that of
males.

From the figure it has been observed that the participation rate among male
remains stagnant over the years. On the contrary, in case of females, there is
continuous decline in participation rate except during 2004-05.

50
Between the period 1999-00 and 2004-05 the female participation rate increases
by 3.23 percentages . Again in 2009-10 there has been a sharp decline by 6.13
percentage point that is from 29.43 percent in 2004-05 to 23.3 percent in 2009-
10. At the same time, the figure also shows that there exists wide gender
difference in participation rate across all the NSS rounds and it is one of the
lowest among developing countries.

FIGURE 2 :URBAN AND RURAL WPR ; MALE

AND FEMALE
60

50

40 MALE WPR URBAN

30 MALE WPR RURAL

20 FEMALE WPR URBAN

FEMALE WPR RURAL
10

0
43rd 50th 55th 61st 66th 68th 70th

Source : Employment and unemployment surveys of NSS

Figure -2 represents the men and women WPR in urban and in rural areas for
the period 1987-88 to 2017-18 . The labour force participation rate of male in
rural areas is 54.3 percent and in urban areas it is 54.6 percent. Unlike this
among rural females 24.8 percent participated in labour force where it was 14.6
percent in urban area. Similar pattern is observed in all the rounds of NSS .
Compared to other periods , it is clear from the table that participation rates of
rural women are significantly higher than those of urban women and there is a
wide gap in female employment in rural and urban areas. During the 43 rd round
, only 15.2 percent of female were employed in the urban areas which increased
to 16.5 percent during the 70th round. In comparison to the magnitude of rural

51
urban disparity of female employment , the same is very less for male
participation rates.

One of the major features that emerge from the trend analysis is that women`s
participation in labour market is typically low in India and gender difference in
participation rate also persists. Only 25 to 30 percent of women in rural and 15
to 18 percent in urban areas participate in labour market where as in the case
males it is more than 50 percent. One of the reasons of low participation of
women in labour force is the non recognition of a number of women centric
works as economic activities(such as cooking , house and utensils cleaning etc.).
Moreover , a variety of social and family related constraints compel women to
confine themselves to household activities at their prime working age. Early
exist of women ( probably post marital age) from labour market is particularly
reflected in urban areas where women face inadequate social and family support
system ( Ministry of Labour and Employment, 2010). Another major feature
that comes out from the figure is that fact that there has been a steep decline in
female labour force irrespective of rural and urban areas in recent year.The
decline is relatively higher especially in rural area. It has been observed from
the data that 2004-05 is a bit of an outlier in terms of female labour force
participation rate. On the other hand, 2009-10 indicates a reverse on to the
longer term trend of gradual decline. It has been pointed out by the official that
poor investigative method or inadequate capture of women`s work in the latest
round results in decline in participation rate. But however, the argument put
forth by( Chandrasekhar and Ghosh , 2011) it may not be the reason for such a
persistent decline of female labour force. If changing labour demand results in
more demand for women in paid work, then it is more likely to be captured by
the investigators. Nevertheless, there has not been any evident implying
increase in demand for women in paid employment and that is real paradox.

52
There are several reasons for why female opt out of labour force. Increase in
educational level of female partly responsible for the recent decline in
participation rate. If the period 2004-05 to 2009-10, 313 million people opted
out of the labour force to study as against 267n million in the previous 5 years
1999-2000 to 2004-05. But at the same time education may not be the only
factor for such fluctuating trend since participation rate declines across all, the
age groups. There are certain other factors that also play important role which
needs in depth investigation.

REASON FOR RECENT DECLINING TREND:

Indian women are still not on an equal footing with either male counterpart
when it comes to the workplace. The main reason for the same are as follows.

1. As per the global gender gap index 2017 prepared by the world economic
forum (WEF), India ranked 108th out of an estimated 180 country. This
was attributed to less participation 0f women in the economy and low
wages . India also ranked 141st in the index under the health and survival
pillars due to lingering causes of malnourishment , MMR and IMR.

2. The world bank notes that about 23.7% of women contribute to the
labour force in India due to a culture that is not yet open to genuine
equality in the workplace.

3. All India survey of higher education (AISHE) notes that higher education
female enrollment ratio reduced from 25.8% in 2014 to 23.7% in 2015.
This reduces the average Indian women`s chanced to get a secure job.

53
 4. In majority cases, family pressure, patriarchal norms that favour giving
more weightage to sons and sympathetic cooperate environments made
taking a leave all the more difficult. The International Labour
Organization (ILO) ranked India 121 out of 131 countries due to more
females dropping out of the workforce.

Figure – 3 : SHARE OF FEMALE EMPLOYMENT IN DIFFERENT

SECTORS
URBAN FEMALES RURAL FEMALES

ROUND AGR.SEC MAN.SEC SER.SEC AGR.SEC MAN.SEC SER.SEC

43RD 29.4 27 27.8 84.7 6.9 3.7

50TH 24.7 24.1 35 86.2 7 4
55TH 17.7 24 34.2 85.4 7.6 4.3
61ST 18.1 28.2 35.9 83.3 8.4 5.7
66TH 13.9 27.9 39.3 79.4 7.5 8.3
68TH 10.9 44 55.1 74.9 16.7 8.3
70TH 8.3 49 61 75 18.2 10.9
Source: Employment and unemployment surveys of NSS

AGR = AGRICULTURE SECTOR

MAN = MANUFACTURING SECTOR
SER = SERVICE SECTOR

Figure - 3 represents the broad sectoral classification for rural and urban
females. The proportion of urban women engaged in agriculture has gradually
declined overtime from around 29% in the 43rd round to around 8% in the 70th
round. However, the proportion of urban women engaged in the manufacturing
sector nearly remains constant up to 66th round. However, there has been a
54
significant increase in urban females to 44% in the manufacturing sector. Given
the export oriented and liberalization policies of the government , this stagnancy
of urban female employment from 43rd round to 66th round is indeed surprising.
Chandrasekhar and Ghosh (2007) have examined this aspect in detail and have
pointed to the chances of misclassification of employment in the available data.
They find that while the employment of urban women according to principal
status has been rising steadily. They have explained that home-based
subcontracting work does not get included in the employment data and thus
could be an explanation of the stagnancy of female employment in
manufacturing. However, female employment in manufacturing sector has been
increased significantly between 66th and 68th round. In case of urban females,
the major gainer has been the other services. It includes both well paying skilled
jobs as well as low paying unskilled jobs in the private and public spheres. For
urban employment in other services increased from around 28% in 43 rd round to
around 61% in the 70th round.

Similarly, for rural women , the proportion employed in agriculture has declined
from about 85% in the 43rd round to about 75% in the 70th round. Srivastava &
Srivastava (2009) have labeled this slow movement out of agriculture as
‘creeping feminisation’ of agriculture. The concentration of women in
agriculture would not significantly improve their well-being as agricultural
wages are significantly lower than non-agricultural wages. The proportion of
rural women engaged in manufacturing has been very low and stagnant except
an increase of 18.2% in the 70th round. Similarly in case of rural women ,
employment in other services is very low and increased only marginally.=

55
Figure – 4: EDUCATIONAL LEVEL OF WORKING FEMALES
URBAN FEMALES RURAL FEMALES

ROUNDS 43RD 50TH 55TH 61ST 66TH 68th 70th 43RD 50TH 55TH 61ST 66TH 68th 70th

NOT
29.2 30 27.1 30.4 23.1 21 19.5 52.6 54 51.3 55 43.2 41 39.2
LITERATE

UP TO
17.5 20.3 17.7 23.4 20.6 25 27.2 39.1 41.6 40.3 44.9 38.4 40 42
PRIMARY

MIDDLE 11.3 13.1 12.9 16.1 15.4 17.1 19.2 29 29 29 37.1 29.4 30 31

SECONDARY 15.1 13.4 12.4 12.3 9.7 11.4 36.2 26.1 25.8 25.7 30.5 22.2 25 16.8

HIGHER
NA 14.7 12.4 12.9 9.4 15 16 NA 23.4 20.6 25.2 18.3 20 23.5
SECONDARY

GRADUATE &
31.5 30.1 27.3 29 25.9 27.1 28 35.1 36.6 31 34.5 29.7 36 37
ABOVE

Source: Employment and unemployment surveys of NSS

Figure - 4 shows the educational level of working urban and rural women. The
education level is divided in to 6 categories.
1. Not literate
2. Literate
3. Up to primary
4. Middle
5. Secondary
6. Higher secondary
7. Graduate and above

In urban areas ,WPR is higher for literate females than for females with higher
levels of education except graduates. For the 66 th round , 23% of illiterate urban
56
women are employed but this is only 15 % and 9% for women who have middle
and higher secondary education. However, such a pattern does not hold true for
men i.e higher levels of education are associated with higher participation rates(
Srivastava and Srivasatava, 2009). There are complex social and economic
factors at work which could be held responsible for this pattern.

In case of urban females with graduate and above level of education, the WPR
declined from around 32% in the 43rd round to 29% in the 61st round and to 27%
in the 66th round. This indicates that urban women finding employment are less
educated and are probably finding work in low paying unskilled jobs which do
not require much education. In the 66th round , around 43% of the illiterate rural
women are employed, where as this is only 18% and 29% respectively for
women who have higher secondary and graduate level of education. Like urban
women, WPR of rural women with secondary, higher secondary and graduate
and above level of education have also declined from 50 th round to the 66th
round. This implies that a lesser number of skilled and educated rural women
are participating than earlier and most of them finding work in low- paying
unskilled job.
Figure – 5: AVERAGE WAGE OF RURAL & URBAN FROM 1993-94
TO 2017-18

AVERAGE WAGE OF RURAL AND URBAN FROM

1993-94 TO 2017-18
600
500
MALE WAGE URBAN
400
300 MALE WAGE RURAL
200 FEMALE WAGE URBAN
100 FEMALE WAGE RURAL
0
50th 55th 61st 66th 68th 70th

Source: Employment and unemployment surveys of NSS

57
 Figure - 5 shows the average wage of regularly employed for men and women
in rural and urban areas from 1993-94 to 2017-18. It is clear from this table that
the absolute wage differentials between rural and urban women have widened
overtime. During 1993-94 , rural women had an average wage of Rs.35 while
urban women had an average wage of Rs. 62 and the corresponding figures for
2017-18 are Rs. 266 and Rs.424 respectively.

Thus it becomes clear that wage differentials for rural and urban women have
not narrowed down during the study period. There are also problems like lesser
number of days of work for females and receiving less than the minimum
stipulated wages.In contrast to females , the wage disparities in case of female
are less striking. Therefore, female workers are in a work-off position in terms
of wage earnings in comparison to the male workers. In the category of female
workers , rural females are relatively worse off. Thus there is an urgent need for
government policy to improve the average earnings of rural women and reduce
those disparities.

Figure – 6: STATE –WISE FEMALE WORKFORCE PARTICIPATION

RATE

URBAN FEMALE RURAL FEMALE

STATES
50TH 55TH 61ST 66TH 68TH 70th 50TH 55TH 61ST 66TH 68 TH 70th

ASSAM 9.2

BIHAR 6.9 7.5 6.5 4.7 7.1 9.5 17.2 17.3 13.8 6.5 8.5 10.8

GUJURAT 14.2 13.5 15.1 14.3 19.3 23.2 39.6 41.3 42.7 32 40.3 42.1

HARYANA 15.2 9.8 13.2 13 14.4 16.4 27.1 20.2 31.7 25 23.4 22.3

KARNATAKA 18.1 17.8 18.1 17 23.5 29.7 43 38 45.9 37 40.6 42.4

KERALA 20.3 20.3 20 19.4 27.8 35.4 23.8 23.8 25.6 21.8 30.8 30.8

58
 MADHYA
14.2 13.4 15.4 13.1 17 21.5 41 38.2 36.6 28.2 38 42.5
PRADESH

MAHARASTRA 16.9 13.7 19 15.9 23.6 32.4 47.7 43.4 47.4 39.6 56.5 60.3

ODISHA 15.1 14.5 14.8 11.9 21.6 31. 31.7 29.9 32.2 24.3 36.1 46.3

PUNJAB 9.3 12.5 13.3 12.4 19.4 27.5 22 28 32.2 24.3 36.1 45.4

RAJASTHAN 16.3 13.8 18.2 12 20.6 27.7 45.7 38.8 40.7 35.7 53 58

TAMILNADU 23 21.5 24.1 19.1 27.9 39 47.8 43 46.1 40.5 51.9 61.5

WEST BENGAL 14.3 11.7 15.5 14.1 23.8 34.2 18.5 16 17.8 15.2 27.9 37.9

UTTER PRADESH 10.2 9.4 11.7 8 14.5 19.2 21.9 20.1 24 17.4 28.1 35.3

ALL INDIA 15.5 13.9 16.6 13.8 21 28 32.8 29.9 32.7 26.1 37.2 32.4

Source : Employment and unemployment surveys of NSS

Figure - 6 shows urban female WPR in different states during 1992-93 to 2017-
18. Among major states – Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Rajasthan, and
Maharastra show higher than all India average participation rates for the urban
females. On the other hand, Assam, Bihar, Utter Pradesh, Gujurat, Haryana,
Punjab and Madhya Pradesh have female WPR lower than the national
average. West Bengal and Odisha show WPR coincide with all India average.
Only three states Andhra Pradesh , Kerala and Tamilnadu have female WPR
higher than the level of 20%. Almost all states have experienced a fall in urban
female WPR during 66th round , 2009-10. The reasons for this fall at the state
level and national level needs , detail examination. However , the global
financial recession could be one of the possible reasons for this decline in WPR.
Except Bihar, Assam and Kerala , all states experienced an increase in the
urban female WPR from 55th round to the 61st round. The increase is more
significant for states like Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu, Maharastra and West
Bengal . The EPR difference between 61st and 66th round . However, this trend
was reversed in the subsequent 68th round states like Assam, Bihar and Utter
Pradesh are the worst performers in terms of participation of urban women in

59
the work force. On the other hand, Tamilnadu, Kerala, Andhara Pradesh and
Maharastra display a good performance with respect to female WPR.

In case of Kerala, Punjab and Haryana WPR of rural women is similar to the all
India average. Gujurat and Rajashtan emerge as two states where rural female
WPR are significantly higher than urban female WPR. Assam , Bihar Uttar
Pradesh are the three states where both urban and rural female employment is
very low as compared to national level. So it is clear that significant inter state
variation in case of female WPR is observed in both urban and rural areas.

60
CHAPTER – 6

61
BARRIERS OF WOMEN EMPLOYMENT IN INDIA OR
PROBLEMS FACED BY WORKING WOMEN IN INDIA:

OCCUPATIONAL PROBLEMS AS STRESS:

In women occupational stress is stress involving work. Work and family are two
most important aspects in women`s lives. Balancing work and family roles has
become a key personal and family issue for many societies. There are many
facets in working mother`s lives that subject to stresses. They deal with home
and family issues as well as job stress on a daily basis.

World Health Organization (WHO) Definition: Occupational or work related

stress “is the response people may have been when presents with work demands
and pressures that are not matched to their knowledge and abilities and which
challenge their ability to cope”.

Reason for occupational stress:

Imbalance between work and family leads to occupational stress. Imbalance

between work and family life arises due to a number of factors. Various factors
are following.

1. Mental Harassment:

It is an age old convention that women are less capable and inefficient in
working as compared to men. The attitude which considers women unfit for
certain jobs holds back women. In spite of the constitutional provisions , gender
bias creates obstacles in their recruitment . In addition to this , the same attitude

62
governs injustice of unequal salaries for the same job. The true equality has not
been achieved even after 61 years of independence. Working in such conditions
inevitably puts strain on women to greater extent as compared to men, thus
making them less eager in their career.

2. Discrimination at work place:

However, Indian women still face blatant discrimination at their work places.
They are deprived of promotions and growth opportunities at work places but
this does not apply to all working women. A majority of working women
continue to be denied their right to equal pay. Under the Equal Remuneration
Act, 1976 and are unpaid in comparison to their male colleagues. This is usually
the case in factories and labour oriented industries.

3. No safety of working women while travelling:

Typically, the orthodox in the Indian society makes it difficult for working
women to balance their domestic environment with the professional life. In
some families , it may not be acceptable to work after 6 o’ clock. Those families
that do not accept these working hours may experience considerable anxiety
everyday about women`s safety while traveling. So many issues affect a
working woman because she is closely protected or watched by her family and
the society.

4. Lack of family support :

Lack of family support is another issue that working women suffers from. At
times, the family does not support women to leave the household work and go

63
to office. They also resist for women working till late in office which also
hampers the performance of the women and this also affects their promotion.

5. Insufficient maternity leaves:

Insufficient maternity leave is another major issue that is faced by working

mother. This not only affects the performance of women employees at work ,
but is also detrimental to their personal lives.

6. Job insecurity:

Unrealistic expectations , especially in the time of corporate reorganizations ,

which sometimes put unhealthy and unreasonable pressure on the employees,
can be a tremendous source of stress and suffering. Increased work load
extremely long work hours and intense pressures to perform at peak level all the
time for the same day , can actually leave an employee physically and
emotionally drained. Excessive travel and too much time way from family also
contribute to an employee’s stressors.

7. Workplace adjustment:

Adjusting to the workplace culture, whether in a new company or not, can be

intensely stressful making oneself culture such as communication patterns of the
boss as well as the co-workers can be a lesson of the life. Maladjustment to
workplace cultures may lead to subtle conflicts with colleagues or even with
superiors. In many cases office politics or gossips can be stress inducers.

64
 8. Sexual harassment:

Today almost all working women are prone to sexual harassment irrespective of
their status, personal characteristics and the type of their employment. They face
sexual harassment on way on transports, at working places, educational
institutions and hospitals, at home and even in police stations when they go to
file complaints. It is shocking that the law protectors are violating outraging
modesty of women. Most of the women tend to be concentrated in the poor
service jobs where as men are in immediate supervisory position , which gives
them an opportunity to exploit their subordinate women.

9. Other reasons:

It includes personal demographics like age, level of education, marital status,

number of children ,personal income and number of jobs currently had where
you work for pay and work situation characteristics like job tenure, size of
employing organization , hours of worked per week.

65
Government Schemes, Policies and Its Implementation :

Women workers' contribution to GDP in 2004-05 was estimated to be of the

order of 50 per cent. Yet, legislation backed welfare measures (social security
measures) have been confined, by and large, to the organized workers. “Only 6
percent of unorganized workers are covered by social security measures”
(NCEUS, 2006; p.24). The National Commission for Enterprises in the
Unorganized Sector (NCEUS) highlights that the unorganized sector workforce
is devoid of three types of social protection, (1) employment security, (2) work
security, and (3) social security. Unorganized Workers’ Social Security Act
(2008).In the spirit of extending social security to the unorganized sector, the
Government of India passed the Unorganized Workers’ Social Security Act
(UWSSA) in 2008. The objective of the Act is to provide unorganized sector
workforce with a minimum level of social protection to enable them to endure
income and health related shocks, stay out of poverty, and ultimately allow
them to lead dignified lives. The various social security schemes under the
UWSSA (2008) for the unorganized workers are as follows:

 Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Schemes

 National Family Benet Scheme
 Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY)
 Handloom Weaver's Comprehensive Welfare Scheme (HWCWS)
 Handicraft Artesian Comprehensive Welfare Scheme (HACWS)
 Pension to Master Craft Persons (PMCP)
 National Pension Scheme - Swavalamban (NPS-S)
 National Scheme for Welfare of Fishermen and Training and Extension
(NSWFTE)

66
 Janshree Bima Yojana (JBY)
 AamAdmi Bima Yojana (AABY)
 Rashtriya Swathya Bima Yojana (RSBY)

Currently four models of social assistance are in operation in the country

(IFMR, 2008):

a. The welfare fund model. Here the fund is created through contributions
from various sources including the employers and the government under the
supervision of the State.

b. The social assistance model. Under this, cash payment is made to defined
beneficiaries through budget provision.

c. The social security scheme model. These are schemes designed to protect
unorganized workers. The schemes are usually implemented by the
concerned governments or their agencies for defined categories of workers.

d. The mutual help model. This model is promoted and mediated by an NGO
with contributions from the workers.

In general, the welfare funds have been adopted in most of the Central and State
Governments’ social security programmes for the welfare of workers in the
unorganized sector. “The Government of India established five Welfare Funds
between 1946 and 1981. These funds are administered by the Ministry of
Labour and Employment, Government of India in certain occupations where
employee-employer relationships are not clearly discernible. Also, by its very
nature, the scheme of welfare funds is outside the framework of specific
employee-employer relationship in as much as the resources are raised by the
67
government through a cess under a statutory provision and not through
donations/voluntary contributions from any employer. Further, delivery of
services, specified under the funds, is effected without linkage to worker's
contribution (Sodhi, Rawal and Ramanujam, 2008).” Though domestic workers
have been included in the Unorganized Workers Social Security Act, 2008 (Act
33 of 2008), they have not yet got any benefits. Even in Maharashtra, the
Domestic Workers Welfare Board Act 2008 has not been implemented
(MDWWB, 2008). Domestic workers seldom have an organized mechanism for
collective bargaining. Although the Constitution of India is yet to recognize
Social Security as a fundamental right it does require that the State can strive to
promote the welfare of the people by protecting a social harmony. Specially,
Article 41 of the Constitution requires that the State should make effective
provision for securing the right to employment, education and public assistance
in case of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement. Further to note
that Article 42 requires that the State should make provision for securing
humane conditions of work and for maternity relief. According to NCEUS,
Kerala leads all other states with statutory provisions for as many as 19 welfare
funds covering 54 percent of unorganized workers in the state. Maharashtra has
a relatively well functioning 39 different welfare funds for 'Mathadi Workers',
which largely the Goods Transport Unprotected Workers, and Cloth Market and
Shops Workers(Maharashtra Act, 1969). Gujarat, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh
and Madhya Pradesh also have established welfare funds for selected categories
of workers (NCEUS 2006). These funds mostly cover requirements such as
accidental death and injury, maternity and financial assistance for the education
of children. The Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of
Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996.This act regulates the
employment and conditions of service of building and other construction
workers. It also aims to provide their safety, health and welfare measures. The
Building and Other Construction Workers Cess Act (1996).Following these

68
Acts, the Building and Other Construction Workers (ECS) Central Rules, 1998
were notified on November 19, 1998. These Acts are applicable to every entities
that employs ten or more workers in any building or construction work, where
the project value is more than 10 lakhs. The Welfare Funds proposed in the Act
are to be financed by the contributions from beneficiaries - levy of a cess on
construction works at a rate ranging between 1 and 2 per cent of the
construction cost incurred by an employer and non-mandatory grants by the
State/Central governments. The major initiative of the Central Government
(regulating the conditions of work and provision of a measure of social security)
relates to construction workers who form one of the largest segments of workers
in the unorganized sector. Above mentioned two umbrella legislations have
been passed by the Parliament in this regard, on the basis of which the states are
expected to enact state-level legislations. These two Central Acts are: The
Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and
Conditions of Service) Act, 1996; and The Building and Other Construction
Workers Cess Act (1996).Under these umbrella legislations, all state
governments are expected to enact their own legislations. Most of the states are
still in the process of adoption and implementation of these Acts. Gujarat
Government has few initiatives for the unorganized sector as follows:

 Shramik Suraksha Accident Group Insurance Scheme.

 Welfare Scheme for Salt workers
 Welfare scheme for inter and inter-state migrant rural workers
 Financial Assistance to rural labours in serious and malignant disease

69
CHAPTER – 7

70
FINDINGS:

The female workers have much lower participation rates than their male
counterparts and hence comprise a marginalized section. The share of rural
women in the work force is much more higher than those of urban. However,
women in rural India are clearly in an inferior position in the labour market vis-
s-vis their urban counterparts. This is evident from the fact the most of the rural
women are casually employed and are engaged in low-paying agricultural work.
Moreover, most of the rural women are predominantly engaged in agriculture
where earning opportunities are low. On the other hand, proportion of urban
women engaged in agriculture has been declining rapidly, and most of the urban
women are finding work in ‘services’ sector. The wage differentials between
rural and urban women are also striking. Rural women earn considerably lower
wages than urban women, and the disparities have not shown any tendency to
decline. It has been observed that both in rural and urban areas , WPR are higher
for illiterate females than for females with higher levels of education in general.
This implies that a lesser number of educated and skilled women are
participating than earlier , and most of them are getting work in low-paying
unskilled jobs. State-wise female WPR reveals that southern states like
Tamilnadu, Andhara Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharastra and Kerala have
participation rate higher than all-India level. Wide inter-state disparities are
observed with respect to female WPR for rural and urban females.

71
SUGGESTION:

Several important policy implications emerge out of above analysis. There is an

urgent need to provide education, training and skill development programme
for women that could help in raising their productive potential. It is also
important to focus on the provision of secondary and higher education that
would ensure that women workers find high-quality regular employment.

72
CONCLUSION:

There are significant wage differentials between rural and urban women. Apart
from rural-urban wage differentials there exists a significant gender differential
also in the labour market. Therefore, the study suggests appropriate government
intervention along with policy formulation for addressing the issues. Despite
significant problems in a male dominated society , Indian women have found
their way out for growth and empowerment either through self-help groups ,
immense importance for competing with the developed world as they are man
power source as well as diverse consumer group. The civilization of the country
will undergo a noteworthy positive change with educated and financially sound
women folk. Given that one-third of the estimated 480 million jobs in the
country are being performed NGOs, Banks, Government assistance , and micro
finance institutions or through private sectors. In the coming years the role of
women will be of by women, more than half of the advertising is targeted
towards the homemaker.

73
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